Queen Victoria's husband, Prince Albert, had a grand plan to create an avenue of colleges and museums in a part of what is now the Kensington area. He succeeded.
It was those imaginative. far-seeing Victorians who were instrumental in creating these treasure houses. They had power as well as the panache to see their ambitions through to fruition and the main museum buildings are a monument to their persistance.
In spite of their likely good intentions, the ethics of taking objects from ‘the Colonies’ has long been debated and in recent times (sometimes bowing to pressure) some items - particularly those with religious significance, have been returned to their original homes.
One great Victorian in particular, none other than Queen Victoria’s consort, Prince Albert, was responsible for the amazing cluster of four major museums in Kensington: the Science, Geological and Natural History museums and the V&A close by. This area has been called ‘a people’s education park’ and would take a lifetime to explore properly. Initially Prince Albert was the power and imagination behind the buying up of land on which to build these great museums.
The British Museum is the largest museum in the UK and one of the oldest museums in the world as well as possibly being the most visited attraction in London.The most popular museum for children is the Science Museum
There are many other museums in London, some perhaps unexpected. For example, The Ragged School Museum which was opened by Dr. Thomas Barnado in 1877 in order to give poor children a basic education.
Others include a Tea and Coffee Museum, a Museum of Chinese Art a London Transport Museum, a Theatre Museum and a Freud Museum, plus many more.
In 2001 free admission to all major museums and galleries was introduced, except for major touring exhibition like, for instance, the Terracotta Warriors from China, which are very expensive to organise.
For more of the world’s best ‘freebies’ - watch this space.
